(a) For the purposes of this section:
(1) “Person” means a person as defined in section 4-166, but excludes (A) an individual with a net worth in excess of five hundred thousand dollars, (B) a business whose gross revenues for the most recently completed fiscal year exceeded one million five hundred thousand dollars, (C) a business with more than twenty-five employees and (D) an agency as defined in section 4-166.
(2) “Reasonable fees and expenses” means any expenses not in excess of seven thousand five hundred dollars which the court finds were reasonably incurred in opposing the agency action, including court costs, expenses incurred in administrative proceedings, attorney's fees, witness fees of all necessary witnesses, and such other expenses as were reasonably incurred.
(b) In any appeal by an aggrieved person of an agency decision taken in accordance with section 4-183 and in any appeal of the final judgment of the Superior Court under said section taken in accordance with section 51-197b, the court may, in its discretion, award to the prevailing party, other than the agency, reasonable fees and expenses in addition to other costs if such prevailing party files a request for an award of reasonable fees and expenses within thirty days of the issuance of the court's decision and the court determines that the action of the agency was undertaken without any substantial justification.
(P.A. 83-284; P.A. 88-317, S. 26, 107; P.A. 97-88.)
History: P.A. 88-317 added Subsec. (a)(1)(D), excluding an agency from definition of “person”, effective July 1, 1989, and applicable to all agency proceedings commencing on or after that date; P.A. 97-88 amended Subsec. (b) to require a prevailing party seeking an award of reasonable fees and expenses to file a request therefor within 30 days of the issuance of the court's decision.
Cited. 204 C. 17; Id., 672; 214 C. 505; 216 C. 85; 237 C. 28.
Cited. 18 CA 13; 30 CA 720; 38 CA 506; 43 CA 39; 45 CA 543.
Subsec. (b):
Cited. 240 C. 141. Agency action must be entirely unreasonable or without any reasonable basis in law or fact. 249 C. 693. Department of Social Services' actions were not entirely unreasonable where department made a good faith interpretation of the legislative mandate to minimize financial risk to Medicaid program. 258 C. 642.
Cited. 26 CA 326; 41 CA 866. Agency's action must be entirely unreasonable or without any reasonable basis in law or fact to prevail. 51 CA 96. Trial court abused discretion in not awarding attorneys' fees under section because agency had no fewer than three opportunities to take appropriate action and thus there was no substantial justification for its failure to act. 75 CA 142.
Notes of Decisions
Oakley v. Comm'n on Human Rights & Opportunities, 662 A.2d 137 (Conn. App. Ct. 1995).
· cites it 38× “The defendant state commission on human rights and opportunities appeals from the trial court’s granting of the plaintiff’s motion for attorney’s fees and expenses pursuant to General Statutes § 4-184a. The commission claims that (1) the trial court did not have jurisdiction to…”
Burinskas v. Dep't of Soc. Servs., 691 A.2d 586 (Conn. 1997).
· cites it 20× “Additionally, the trial court awarded attorney’s fees to the plaintiffs pursuant to General Statutes § 4-184a (b). 5 On appeal, the department challenges the trial court’s determinations.”
Schoonmaker v. Lawrence Brunoli, Inc., 828 A.2d 64 (Conn. 2003).
· cites it 4× “2d 586 (1997) (under General Statutes § 4-184a [b], which “provides that the ‘court may, in its discretion,’ award reasonable fees to the prevailing party if the court determines that the agency acted ‘without any substantial justification,’ ” abuse of discretion standard…”
Meadowbrook Ctr., Inc. v. Buchman, 181 A.3d 550 (Conn. 2018).
· cites it 4× “2d 137 ]," which had concluded that postjudgment motions for attorney's fees under General Statutes § 4-184a"must be filed within a reasonable time of the entering of the final judgment, and that the determination of whether such a motion has been filed within a reasonable time…”
Doe v. Heintz, 526 A.2d 1318 (Conn. 1987).
· cites it 6× “General Statutes § 4-184a. 10 In view of this legislative policy of selecting the special situations where attorneys’ fees may be awarded, we agree with the trial court that it is inappropriate for the judiciary to establish under the private attorney general doctrine a broad…”
McDonald v. Rowe, 682 A.2d 542 (Conn. App. Ct. 1996).
· cites it 11× “Four and one-half months after the judgment, 1 the trial court granted the plaintiffs motion for attorney’s fees on the ground that there was no substantial justification for the defendant’s refusal to pay for the wheelchair.”
Nagy v. Employees' Review Bd., 735 A.2d 297 (Conn. 1999).
· cites it 13× “Shortly thereafter, Nagy filed a motion in the trial court, pursuant to General Statutes § 4-184a (b), 10 seeking an award of costs, while the plaintiffs in the Barber appeal, also pursuant to § 4-184a (b), filed a motion seeking an award for attorney’s fees and costs.”
Oakley v. Comm'n On Human Rights & Opportunities, 675 A.2d 851 (Conn. 1996).
· cites it 7× “The sole issue in this case is whether the trial court has jurisdiction to consider a motion for *29 attorney’s fees pursuant to General Statutes § 4-184a 1 if that motion is filed approximately five months after a final judgment on the merits of the underlying administrative…”
Connecticut Ass'n of Not-for-Profit Providers for Aging v. Dep't of Soc. Servs., 709 A.2d 1116 (Conn. 1998).
· cites it 4× “III Having concluded that the department’s practice was impermissible, we must address the plaintiffs final claim seeking reimbursement for reasonable attorney’s fees and costs pursuant to General Statutes § 4-184a. Section 4-184a (b) authorizes a court to grant attorney’s fees…”
Skindzier v. Comm'r of Soc. Servs., 784 A.2d 323 (Conn. 2001).
· cites it 4× “Finally, the plaintiff claims that the trial court improperly denied her request for attorney’s fees pursuant to General Statutes § 4-184a (b). We agree with the plaintiff that the trial court properly concluded that testamentaiy trusts are not subject to medicaid’s…”
Raymond v. Freedom of Info. Comm'n, 787 A.2d 56 (Conn. App. Ct. 2001).
· cites it 11× “to *17 1995) § 4-184a (b). 1 On appeal, the plaintiff claims that the court improperly concluded that the defendant freedom of information commission (commission) acted with substantial justification, and that the court thereby improperly denied her request for attorney’s fees…”
Johnson v. Dep't of Pub. Health, 710 A.2d 176 (Conn. App. Ct. 1998).
· cites it 2× “ment be dismissed, that temporary and permanent injunctive relief be entered that is appropriate to protect the plaintiffs substantive and procedural rights and to effect and enforce such declaratory judgments as decreed by the court, that he be awarded money damages consistent…”
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